Dinesh Karthik: An unsung hero

When pressure mounts, skills are put to test. That’s exactly what happened with Dinesh Karthik when he entered with to bat in the final clash between India and Bangladesh.

When Dinesh Karthik entered, India were 133 for 5 chasing 167 for clinching the Nidahas Trophy with only two overs left. His blitz included two sixes and a four in first three balls.
His match-winning shot came with a six in the last ball when India needed five runs to claim the title.

Is the wait over?

Dinesh Karthik was the first among the squad of U-19 squad 2004 that included likes of Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina, Robin Uthappa and Ambati Rayudu to get a national call.

He made his ODI debut in 2004 against England and he made his Test debut the same year in 2004 against Australia. However, since 13 years of his debut, Dinesh Karthik has played only 23 Test matches, 79 ODIs and 19 T20I for the national side.

This perhaps isn’t fair on Karthik’s part, but destiny indeed has played its trick. With the rise of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Karthik probably got sidelined.

Karthik kept going on and conditioned himself to become a different cricketer. His performance in the domestic cricket speaks for itself and he has also made a mark for himself in the Indian Premier League.

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Now, whether Karthik retains his spot or not remains to be seen but he has definitely clawed his way back in the Indian Cricket Team to earn a reputation for himself.

Rohit Sharma’s Ace:

Dinesh Karthik was expecting to be called in to bat earlier. But skipper Rohit Sharma had planned something for him.

“We held him back because we wanted someone experienced to finish the game. I thought Mustafizur would probably bowl the 18th and 20th over. We knew he would come out with his best spells and Dinesh would be a better choice at that point,” Rohit Sharma said.

“When he was batting for Mumbai Indians with me, I was aware of his potential. He’s got some different types of skill shots that would be required in the death overs,” he added.

A night before the game Karthik had talked about the nerve-wracking competition for spots in the Indian cricket team and how his bad performance could rule out his chances of playing for the national side. On Sunday night, Karthik proved- ‘He is here to stay’